A study carried out by Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has revealed some startling statistics in relation to Children and their involvement with guns in the United States. It seems nearly 1,300 children died every year from gun related wounds between the period 2012 and 2014. This is out of nearly 6,000 children who get hospitalized annually due to such gun-related incidents.

The findings

CNN reports that the study examined deaths and injuries among children up to the age of 17 in the United States and relied on data from 2002 to 2014. The breakdown of deaths was – homicide 53 percent, suicide 38 percent, unintentional 6 percent and law enforcement or undetermined 3 percent.

Breakdown of injuries was – assault 71 percent, unintentional 21 percent, law enforcement or undetermined 5 percent and self-harm 3 percent.

The study also brought out the fact that males accounted for the maximum number of gun related incidents leading to death or injuries. Another aspect is the community they belong to -- African-American children were associated with the highest rates of homicides while white and Native American children showed a tendency towards the highest rates of suicides.

In the international scenario, the majority of children who fell to bullets in 2010 were Americans – the figure is an astronomical 91 percent and is based on a study that was published recently in The American Journal of Medicine.

From the state-wise breakdown of child firearm deaths it is evident that there is no set pattern but as far as suicides by guns are concerned, the observation is that it was higher in rural areas when compared to urban areas.

The situation is grim

Children are fascinated by guns and receive toy guns as gifts from their parents and family members from a very early age.

They love to playact scenes they see in movies about the police who chase and corner the bad guys and gradually form an idea in their minds that a weapon like a gun translates into power.

Guns are freely available in the United States and anyone can procure one but if there are children in the house, it is the responsibility of the owner to ensure that the weapon is kept in a secure location and out of reach of children.

Such a basic safety measure can prevent gun-related incidents.

The tragedy of 2012 at Sandy Hook Elementary School is an example of how a young boy with a gun can wreak havoc. The incident took place in Newtown, Connecticut, and the 20-year-old entered a school and shot dead twenty children in cold blood. The victims were six and seven-year-olds. He also shot dead six adult staff members of the school and his mother before he turned the gun on himself.

CNN reported, "For Dr. David Wesson, a pediatric surgeon at Texas Children's Hospital who was not involved in the new study, the rates of suicide that emerged in the data were among the most disturbing trends."

However, all is not lost. There is still hope that the grim situation would improve.

Katherine Fowler who is a behavioral scientist for the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and lead author of the study has said that although firearm homicides of children significantly increased between 2002 and 2007, they showed a downward trend in the period between 2007 and 2014.